International Benchrest bench rules

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danyboy

Member
Club switched to concrete bench tables. There is a 8" concrete block post in the middle of the table at the front. I asked if they couldn't have just poured a sonotube full of concrete instead of this wall so we'd get more leg room. I was told it was International Benchrest rules.
Could anyone please direct me to the text specifying these International Benchrest table design regulations ? I looked and couldn't find anything.
Thanks
 
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Blocks are cheap, sonotube pricey and of course is solid concrete which isn't cheap nowdays either. don't even have to grout the blocks any more there adhesives for that.
 
that is not an ABNORMAL BUILD.. THO I AGREE i run my knee into the blocks. the rear could easily be a steel post
 
rsmithsr2 said:
that is not an ABNORMAL BUILD.. THO I AGREE i run my knee into the blocks. the rear could easily be a steel post
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Wasn't about abnormality but Benchrest regulations. The way I interpret your answer, I get it having a post would have been accepted anyway. This info was apparently from Orlando Bunker, Lincoln County Rifle Club. Does that make any sense ?
 
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rsmithsr2 said:
i think they are full of it
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Think so too. Never been to any American Benchrest competition before and the guy from the club who told me so, competes now n then on the American side. I believed him but found this rule strange. Not much leg room with this wall. Thanks for clarifying that with me.
 
All I found in this rule book was:
Bench: A bench shall be a rigidly constructed table of a height to permit a shooter of more or less average height to sit at comfortably by increasing or decreasing the height of the stool on which they sit. It shall be constructed to permit
 
I don't think there is any design approved or disapproved. Some older ranges still have wooden benches/legs. If benches are not stable, shooters would probably not show up, or spend their day b!tching about them.
 
danyboy said:
All I found in this rule book was:
Bench: A bench shall be a rigidly constructed table of a height to permit a shooter of more or less average height to sit at comfortably by increasing or decreasing the height of the stool on which they sit. It shall be constructed to permit
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Yep...as Wayne mentioned, there's no formal specification. I've shot registered IBS/NBRSA tournaments and National Championships on wooden top benches (Painted Post, New York), to cut outs (Porcupine Target Club in South Dakota), T's and wedges. All have their pluses and minuses but as long as they are sturdy, it's the same for everyone. If by 'Orlando' Bunker you mean Orland Bunker from Damariscotta, Maine...tell 'Bunk' hello from me. :)

This is from last weekend at Webster City, Iowa for an example:
LXJkAHUh.jpg
 
danyboy said:
Club switched to concrete bench tables. There is a 8" concrete block wall right in the middle of the table. I asked if they couldn't have just poured a sonotube full of concrete instead of this wall so we'd get more leg room. I was told it was International Benchrest rules.
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I think you got a baloney answer, but your question may have prompted it -- after all, what was done was already "set in concrete."
 
The answer was likely directed more toward the rule books reference to appropriate, rather than an actual rule.
 
Al Nyhus said:
Yep...as Wayne mentioned, there's no formal specification. I've shot registered IBS/NBRSA tournaments and National Championships on wooden top benches (Painted Post, New York), to cut outs (Porcupine Target Club in South Dakota), T's and wedges. All have their pluses and minuses but as long as they are sturdy, it's the same for everyone. If by 'Orlando' Bunker you mean Orland Bunker from Damariscotta, Maine...tell 'Bunk' hello from me. :)

This is from last weekend at Webster City, Iowa for an
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Blocks are cost-effective, whereas sonotubes tend to be more expensive, and, of course, they consist of solid concrete, which isn't budget-friendly these days. You don't even need to grout the blocks anymore; there are adhesives available for that purpose.
 
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zippy06 said:
Lowell Hottenstein said these were the best benches on the world. He was on a few WBC teams.
This is WWCCA near Detroit, MI.
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I found those plans on this site many years ago. Tough to find, if they're still out there in the interweb world. Nonetheless,
I built my bench like those appear and yes, it's damn hard to beat and it can be moved with a strong enough back. Very good design! I still haven't added the casters that I want on it. I plan on using a wheeled trailer jack for the leg on the rear and two fixed casters/wheels up front that just touch the concrete floor when the rear jack is raised a bit. It weighs about 700ish pounds and doesn't like to move as is but it can be done.
 
mwezell said:
I found those plans on this site many years ago. Tough to find, if they're still out there in the interweb world. Nonetheless,
I built my bench like those appear and yes, it's damn hard to beat and it can be moved with a strong enough back. Very good design! I still haven't added the casters that I want on it. I plan on using a wheeled trailer jack for the leg on the rear and two fixed casters/wheels up front that just touch the concrete floor when the rear jack is raised a bit. It weighs about 700ish pounds and doesn't like to move as is but it can be done.
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@zippy06 do you know where the plans may be?
 
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